Hinckley man helping slum children in memory of pal

Joe Branson (right), 24, from Woodland Road, Hinckley, died in a motor scooter crash in the Philippines on August 23. He is pictured with fellow traveller Luke Muggleton (left) from Hinckley, another friend (middle) and local children

A Hinckley man is raising cash for poverty-stricken children in one of the world’s poorest countries after his friend died while the pair were travelling.

Luke Muggleton, 28, from Hinckley created a crowdfunding appeal to help disadvantaged children in the capital of Bangladesh after the death of Joe Branson, 24, who died when the pair were travelling around South East Asia.

Despite his shock at his friend’s death, Luke has been inspired by Joe’s good heart and charisma to help others in his memory.

Luke said: “Joe was a very altruistic person and he found the good in everyone. It was great to be around him because he could talk to anyone and he didn’t judge anybody, at all.”

“I’ve previously been on a lot of trips, but I had never immersed myself in the culture and in the community that much.

"I always felt that I wanted to, and I decided that If I was going to do anything abroad again, it was going to be something worthwhile.”

Luke Muggleton started the crowd funding after teaching in Bangladesh. Luke is pictured here with his pupils

Now Luke wants to help children in a Dhaka slum which has been ripped apart by an inferno which left hundreds homeless, and children without access to education.

Previous to creating the fund, Luke volunteered as a teacher at a charity slum school. There, he witnessed the terrible conditions people have to live in with few possessions. He saw the devastation after the fire destroyed their community they had.

He said: “Just outside the school I was working, you could look out of the window and see the dumping ground where poor women and children were going through all the rubbish and picking up the plastic and metal.”

“On my day off, I went and visited one of the other schools where a fire happened two days before. It was just mayhem – people were left with nothing. All their cooking equipment, food, everything was just burned down.

“About 1,000 people lost their homes and everything they had and there was very little support from anybody. This sort of thing happens to them all the time. I knew I had to start raising money for them as soon as I got back.”

He has already raised £1,130 and hopes to reach £2,000, for the Glory Friendship Social Welfare Organisation, a charity providing education for the poorest children living in three of the largest slums in Dhaka.

Luke Muggleton started crowd funding after teaching in this slum in Bangladesh

The money goes a long way as it only costs £8 per month to fund a child’s education which includes a daily nutritious meal, uniform and learning resources.

He added: “Within five days, we had raised over £1,000, all thanks to some very generous people. It was amazing. So I decided to raise the target and see how far we can go.”

Luke and his friend Jake Johnson will also complete the 135-mile Coast to Coast cycle across England, from Whitehaven to Sunderland, on June 2. The pair have wanted to do something like this for a while, and decided now was the perfect time for the challenge, to show their appreciation for people’s donations.

Luke will also complete a teaching course at the University of Leicester so he can go back to Bangladesh to help the children.

He said: “When you’re over there you really get a feeling of how much change you can make to someone over there without doing a lot of effort. You really can change someone’s life.”

“You don’t see them every day but it’s important. These people haven’t had the opportunities you have. I think if everyone helped out a little bit the world would be a complete different place.”

To find out more about the cause and donate visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/slumschool